Food sovereignty as decolonization: some contributions from Indigenous movements to food system and development politics

Grey, Sam; Patel, Raj

doi:10.1007/s10460-014-9548-9

Cited by 208 publications

(142 citation statements)

References 31 publications

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“…Continued community-engaged research aimed at increasing control over local food systems in these under-researched places and spaces is recommended. Future research on the sustainability of food environments and TFS needs, however, to shift from a focus on food security towards the concept of food sovereignty (Grey & Patel, 2015). In the Indigenous context, food sovereignty encompasses the ability to acquire foods in socially acceptable ways, such as through traditional practices (FAO, 1996;Schuster, Wein, Dickson, & Chan, 2011;Willows et al, 2009) that may encompass IK.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Impacts of place and social spaces on traditional food systems in southwestern Ontario

Neufeld¹,

Richmond²,

Centre³

2017

IJIH

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Processes of environmental dispossession have had dramatic consequences for dietary quality, cultural identity, and the integrity of traditional food systems (TFS) in many Indigenous populations. These transitions have not been documented among First Nation people in southwestern Ontario, and virtually no studies have investigated TFS in southern or urban regions of Canada. Nested within a larger community-centred project designed to better understand the social and spatial determinants of food choice and patterns of food security, the objective of this paper was to explore First Nation mothers' knowledge about access, availability, and practices relating to traditional foods in the city of London, Ontario, and nearby First Nation reserves. In 2010, twenty-five women participated in semi-structured interviews that were audio recorded, transcribed, and analyzed with input from community partners. Our results centre on the women's stories about access, preferences, knowledge, and sharing of traditional foods. Those living on a reserve relied more consistently on traditional foods, as proximity to land, family, and knowledge permitted improved access. Urban mothers faced transportation and economic barriers alongside knowledge loss related to the use and preparation of traditional foods. Overall our results demonstrate uneven geographic challenges for First Nation engagement in TFS, with urban mothers experiencing uniquely greater challenges than those residing on a reserve.

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Impacts of place and social spaces on traditional food systems in southwestern Ontario

Neufeld¹,

Richmond²,

Centre³

2017

IJIH

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“…Thus, food can be seen as the most direct manifestation of the relationships between Indigenous peoples and homelands, and it consequently occupies a central space in traditional thought" ( [44], p. 436).…”

Section: Globalization and Neoliberal Food Productionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“Indigenizing” Food Sovereignty. Revitalizing Indigenous Food Practices and Ecological Knowledges in Canada and the United States

2016

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Abstract:The food sovereignty movement initiated in 1996 by a transnational organization of peasants, La Via Campesina, representing 148 organizations from 69 countries, became central to self-determination and decolonial mobilization embodied by Indigenous peoples throughout the world. Utilizing the framework of decolonization and sustainable self-determination, this article analyzes the concept of food sovereignty to articulate an understanding of its potential for action in revitalizing Indigenous food practices and ecological knowledge in the United States and Canada. The food sovereignty movement challenged the hegemony of the globalized, neoliberal, industrial, capital-intensive, corporate-led model of agriculture that created destructive economic policies that marginalized small-scale farmers, removed them from their land, and forced them into the global market economy as wage laborers. Framed within a larger rights discourse, the food sovereignty movement called for the right of all peoples to healthy and culturally appropriate food and the right to define their own food and agricultural systems. "Indigenizing" food sovereignty moves beyond a rights based discourse by emphasizing the cultural responsibilities and relationships Indigenous peoples have with their environment and the efforts being made by Indigenous communities to restore these relationships through the revitalization of Indigenous foods and ecological knowledge systems as they assert control over their own foods and practices.Keywords: Indigenous; decolonization; food sovereignty; sustainable self-determination; colonization; globalization; ecological knowledge; colonialism Children, language, lands; almost everything was stripped away, stolen when you weren't looking because you were trying to stay alive. In the face of such loss, one thing our people could not surrender was the meaning of land. In the settler mind, land was property, real estate, capital, or natural resources. But to our people, it was everything: identity, the connection to our ancestors, the home of our nonhuman kinfolk, our pharmacy, our library, the source of all that sustained us. Our lands were where our responsibility to the world was enacted, sacred ground. It belonged to itself; it was a gift, not a commodity, so it could never be bought or sold ([1], p. 17).In Braiding Sweetgrass, Indigenous botanist Robin Kimmerer summons readers to imagine a different relationship with the land, water, plants, and animals; to rebuild a sustainable relationship where people and the land are good medicine for each other; to open minds and hearts to the gifts they provide, which will be returned in a circle of reciprocity. She writes,In the indigenous worldview, a healthy landscape is understood to be whole and generous enough to be able to sustain its partners. It engages land not as a machine but as a community of respected non-human persons to whom we humans have a responsibility...reconnecting people and the landscape is as essential as reestablishing proper hydrology or cle...

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“…Over the long term, broader-scale strategies are required to support sustainable, resilient food systems that are culturally-appropriate and grounded in the principles of Indigenous food sovereignty (Grey & Patel, 2015;Morrison, 2011;Weiler et al, 2015). Currently, multiple programs, policies and strategies are in place in the North; however, the extent to which these efforts are complementary and address all aspects of food security (i.e.…”

Section: Moving Forward On Food Securitymentioning

confidence: 99%

Supporting Inuit food security: A synthesis of initiatives in the Inuvialuit Settlement Region, Northwest Territories

Kenny

Wesche

Fillion³

et al. 2018

CanFoodStudies

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Food insecurity among Indigenous Peoples of northern Canada is a significant public health issue that is exacerbated by changing social and environmental conditions. While a patchwork of programs, strategies and polices exist, the extent to which they address all "pillars" of food security (food availability, access, quality, and utilization) remains under-assessed. We respond to this gap by providing a framework for synthesizing and assessing information about food security initiatives, using a case study of the Inuvialuit Settlement Region (ISR), the westernmost Inuit region of Canada. Our objectives are: (1) to identify existing initiatives in the ISR; (2) to assess the breadth and diversity of these initiatives in addressing the four key food security "pillars"; and (3) to present an analytical framework that will facilitate ongoing data updating and sharing in the ISR and elsewhere. Through a scoping review and direct consultation with 12 key informants, we identified 30 initiatives that support food security in the ISR. These are funded and implemented at a range of national, territorial, regional, and local levels, and include both governmental and non-governmental programs, strategic frameworks, and research and monitoring initiatives. Seven key themes emerged from the cross-scale analysis of these initiatives, including: orientation with respect to food security pillars, scope and scale, demographic targeting, funding, monitoring and evaluation, and implications for food security CFS/RCÉA Kenny, Wesche, Fillion, MacLean, & Chan Vol. 5 No. 2, May 2018 74 strategies. While our framework provides a useful tool for data synthesis and analysis, its outputs can help in identifying gaps and opportunities for both resource allocation and program and policy development for under-served communities. Significantly, this study highlights the importance of engaging local perspectives in the development of coordinated approaches to address Inuit food insecurity.

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Food sovereignty as decolonization: some contributions from Indigenous movements to food system and development politics

Cited by 208 publications

References 31 publications

Impacts of place and social spaces on traditional food systems in southwestern Ontario

Impacts of place and social spaces on traditional food systems in southwestern Ontario

“Indigenizing” Food Sovereignty. Revitalizing Indigenous Food Practices and Ecological Knowledges in Canada and the United States

Supporting Inuit food security: A synthesis of initiatives in the Inuvialuit Settlement Region, Northwest Territories

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